The present invention relates generally to telecommunications systems and more particularly to managing telecommunication systems such as systems having single telephone number access to multiple communications services.
In conventional telecommunications systems, a number of different telecommunications services are offered to subscribers. Each telecommunications service typically requires a unique telephone number. Examples of telecommunications services that require a unique telephone number are automatic routing services, voicemail services, facsimile services, paging services, cellular phone services and personal 800 numbers. One of the drawbacks of each service requiring a different telephone number is that managing and publishing multiple telephone numbers for a subscriber that uses multiple communications services can prove to be quite cumbersome. For example, a subscriber may have to provide a first telephone number for facsimile services, a second telephone number for voicemail services, and a third telephone number for cellular services. Thus, a subscriber must remember all of the unique telephone numbers and must make clear to people to whom the subscriber gives the telephone numbers what services are associated with what telephone numbers. Oftentimes, a party confuses the mapping of telephone numbers to services and reaches the wrong service when dialing the telephone number that was given to the party. For instance, a caller may dial a number thinking that he will reach a person and instead the caller reaches a facsimile machine.
Another drawback of conventional systems is the lack of flexibility regarding the telecommunications services that are provided to subscribers. A subscriber may need to provide access to different services to different people at various times. For example, a subscriber may need to have phone calls directed to the subscriber""s workplace during the work week but may need to have phone calls directed to his home or cellular phone on weekends. The subscriber may also wish to limit the people that may reach the subscriber by phone on the weekends. Still further, the subscriber may wish to provide other people with access to his voicemail.
Unfortunately, with conventional systems such configurability of telecommunications services is not available. Moreover, a subscriber has difficulty managing a multitude of communication services, where each service has a different number. For example, if the subscriber wishes to update multiple aspects of his or her service (e.g., voicemail) over a phone, multiple iterative menu selections and presentations are required.
The present invention embodies a computer-implemented method for use in a communications system coupled to the Internet. The method includes the steps of: (a) receiving a request for access, via the Internet, of a subscriber specific record relating to the system; (b) receiving, via the Internet, alternate data for the record; and (c) updating the record based on the received alternate data.
The present invention also embodies an apparatus in a telecommunications network. The apparatus includes a memory and a network server. The memory stores a subscriber specific record relating to the system. The network server is coupled between the memory and the Internet. The network server (a) receives a request for access, via the Internet of the record, (b) receives via the Internet, alternate data for the record, and (c) requests alteration of the record in the memory based on the received alternate date.